medicare ploy
David, you’ve probably already thought of this, but I’m curious what
would happen if your MM507 "broke" after the warranty expired. Would
Medicare decide, "okay, he no longer has a pump" and pay for it then?
Laurie, who can imagine a pump breaking and then miraculously recovering
without Medicare’s knowledge for as long as it took to get the new one <g>
February 11th, 2007 at 2:20 pm
Laurie,
Yes, that question came up, and apparently it doesn’t matter to Medicare. You
have the pump. Details like warranty don’t matter. End of story….
David
February 12th, 2007 at 2:43 pm
Laurie,
I just spoke with Molly at Minimed, and she confirms that Medicare will not pay
for a new pump even if the present one is out of warranty. However, part of
this is due to Minimed policy; they maintain that any pump can be repaired,
therefore the exception that Minimed has that they will pay for a new pump if
the old one is irreparably damaged, does not apply. I asked about what would
happen if the pump were squashed by a steam roller, and she allowed that might
be an exception.
Moral: Get a Steamroller and apply it properly. Then Medicare will come
through!
Molly also confirmed that Medicare does pay for insulin, even though it is not
part of the durable goods clause.
David
February 19th, 2007 at 5:24 pm
No, I didn’t ask about the details. She only said that even though
insulin is not part of the ‘durable equipment’ that covers the pump and
other supplies, it is paid for somehow. I guess if you get the stuff
from Minimed, the insulin is included.
David